Invite

Hi Everyone,

Got the invite, thanks. I live in San Mateo, CA just south of San Francisco. My girlfriend grew up in Valley Stream so I hope that qualifies me to join the group. In January of 2010 I took my first trip to Valley Stream, had a great time touring around and photographing with my Speed Graphic.

Roger

Good morning, Roger;

You received an invitation to join? Wow!

All I got was a way in. I noticed that they had left the door open, so I walked in. My sole connection with Lon Guyland is that I did put in some time and a few laps (sometimes with sand drifting across the asphalt) out on the east end of the island at Bridgehampton.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

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Hi Roger,

Thanks for joining us !
I lived in Valley Stream for a few years, that's where I started learning about photography.
I went to Valley Stream South H.S., but went to V.S. Central for photography, and darkroom lessons.
Ralph, do you have any photographs from your racing days out east ? That would be a blast from the past !

Ron
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Good morning, Ron;

Well, in addition to Bridgehampton, there was also Harewood Acres, Mosport, Sant Jovite, Watkins Glen, The Pocono, Nelson's Ledges, Summit Point, Marlboro Speedway, Danville, Daytona, and I remember being at a few others, but I cannot now recall the names of those tracks. This was back in the era when they were still campaigning BSA DBD-34GS Gold Stars, Ducati Dianas, Matchless G-50s, and Manx Nortons. Then we watched the arrival of the Yamaha TD-1 and the much improved TD-1b (it did not sieze the cylinders as often when they switched from the anodized to the hard chromed cylinders). Oh, and there were also a few tracks out here on the West Coast from San Francisco to Vancouver, British Columbia. Yes, I had many photographs from back in that time period from the early 1960s to April of 1984, but they are all gone now, and the camera that I used to take those photographs. It is sad what can happen when you get unmarried.

In my own stable, I had a Kawasaki A1R, a couple of Yamaha TA-125s and one complete new spare TA-125 engine that had never been in a frame or run, a Yamaha DT-1 with GYT Kit in a Kawasaki A1R frame, and a few others. All gone. Same cause.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

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Hello Ralph,

Sounds like you were really letting the good times roll !
Fortunately getting unmarried didn't take away the good memories.
Although I'm sure that in the future they will probably be able to take that away as well ...
Maybe, there will even be an App for that ? We could select the memories we want erased.

Enjoy The Day !

Ron
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Good morning, Ron;

Yes, photographs really do help to keep the memories refreshed. My collection of 35mm negatives in their envelopes and the prints in their boxes were very useful for that purpose.

Now that I am developing an excessive accumulation of years, perhaps it does not matter as much now. At least the thought of that loss no longer produces the discomfort it did a few years back. Now the work on larger format stuff, the 6x6, 6x7, and the 4 by 5, all help to fill in with thoughts of the new things that are being photographed. With the arrival of Spring (finally!) we are seeing the flowers and the trees blosoming out. I am getting out the tripod and setting up the camera and blocking the wind from moving the subject that will be the object of the conversion of that negative into a latent image. It does seem that the ltttle details are things that require attention when trying to get a photograph that you want to show.

Enjoy; Ralph, Latte Land, Washington